Rum Flavored Custard

[Shel_B]

I like to try making a rum flavored custard.  The plan is to infuse the vanilla beans with dark rum, and hope that I'll get a little rum flavor into the custard.  Just to be clear, I'm looking for subtle flavor, not a hit-you-in-the-face rum attack.  Any thoughts on this idea?

 

Secondly what spice flavor might go with the rum?  I've been lightly grating nutmeg over my custards, but with the rum flavor, might there be a more interesting spice?  Maybe allspice, or mace?

 

Thanks!

[ChrisTaylor]

Seeing as you don't really drink, why not pick up a mini bottle of ... whatever you can get in the mini format? Appleton does minis, right? Use that. And, yeah, nutmeg. Or allspice.

[Shel_B]

Seeing as you don't really drink, why not pick up a mini bottle of ... whatever you can get in the mini format? Appleton does minis, right? Use that. And, yeah, nutmeg. Or allspice.

 

I've already got a bottle of dark rum, so that's covered.  Nutmeg or Allspice ... OK, I'll test those with the rum.  Tks!

[Tri2Cook]

I'd just add rum to the custard. You're making things unnecessarily tedious by trying to get rum flavor in your custard via the vanilla beans(s). If you want it less strong in flavor, add less rum. If you want it less boozy, add the rum while the custard is still very hot or when it still has a short amount of cooking time left. That won't get rid of the alcohol but it will reduce it.

[Shel_B]

I'd just add rum to the custard. You're making things unnecessarily tedious by trying to get rum flavor in your custard via the vanilla beans(s). If you want it less strong in flavor, add less rum. If you want it less boozy, add the rum while the custard is still very hot or when it still has a short amount of cooking time left. That won't get rid of the alcohol but it will reduce it.

 

It's not at all tedious.  The beans will have been soaking in the rum for a while, so all I have to do is scrape the beans into the mixture, just as always.  I already know I can add straight rum to the custard ... no big deal.  This technique is new to me, so I may learn something, get a great result, or flop.  Sometimes it's the journey, not just the destination.

[Tri2Cook]

I already know I can add straight rum to the custard ... no big deal.  This technique is new to me, so I may learn something, get a great result, or flop.  Sometimes it's the journey, not just the destination.

[Shel_B]

I'm right there with you on trying new things just to see what happens but why ask for thoughts on it ahead of time if you already know you're going to do it no matter what?

As for spices, they're aren't many (if any) of the "sweet" spices that don't work well with rum.

 

Edited January 5, 2015 by Shel_B (log)

[Tri2Cook]

It's simple ... perhaps several people have tried the idea and found that it doesn't work, or perhaps they've learned some techniques that will make the result better, e.g., when doing this use more vanilla beans than usual.

Fair enough... ask away and have fun. I hope I'm wrong and you get lots of help/suggestions but I really don't see a lot of people having attempted to get rum flavor into anything via infusing it into something else first*. It's just taking the long way around with no benefit over just adding some rum. But I sincerely hope it works well for you. Let us know.

*Edit: other than something like fruitcake where the fruit is sometimes soaked in booze before going in.

 

Edited January 5, 2015 by Tri2Cook (log)

[JohnT]

Shel_B, I think you are wasting your time. A lot of vanilla extracts are made with rum and other alcohol based spirits. Use vanilla extract in any dessert and what do you taste? Vanilla, not rum! I use white rum and spiced dark rum to make my vanilla extract and I cannot tell it has any rum in it when using the extract. And that's all you are really doing by soaking vanilla beans in rum. Scrape out the seeds of the beans that have soaked in rum, even for a year - you will not taste the rum as the vanilla, if of good quality, will overpower any rum flavour. Give it a go, you will enjoy vanilla custard, not vanilla custard with rum flavouring! If you want vanilla custard with rum flavouring but no, or little alcohol, heat up a bit of rum in a large metal spoon over a flame then burn off the alcohol and use the residue, which I recon you could call "essence of rum". Good luck on your experiment and let us know what you did and your thoughts on the results.

[Lisa Shock]

Everything doesn't infuse into everything else. There's chemistry involved.

 

Vanilla beans are tough husks filled with very oily, very flavorful seeds. Infusing an extra flavor into something oily is possible, but, the flavor compounds have to be fat soluable, and the fat has to be a type which will readily absorb more flavor. Rum gets its flavor from it's ingredients and from aging in barrels. All of its flavor compounds are alcohol soluable, most of them will not be fat soluable. Nobody makes rum (or any booze/wine) flavoring by adding rum to odorless vegetable oil, because it doesn't work. (whereas, with the application of some heat, chile peppers infuse wonderfully into oil) Also, when soaked in alcohol, the vanilla beans themselves lose flavor over time. It takes a while, generally years, but, the rum is getting infused with vanilla, the vanilla seeds (which is what you'll actually be using) aren't being infused with much if any rum because they are mostly oil. So, you're leaving a lot of flavor behind by just pulling the beans out of the rum, leaving the rum behind.

 

There's also the issue of quantities. As John points out, many vanilla extracts are made with rum. I personally added 50% rum to one of my vanilla extract bottles (started with neutral Everclear) and none of my baked goods made with it taste of rum, just Tahitian vanilla. The vanilla flavors are a lot more powerful. To get some distinct rum flavor out of it, you'd have to use a lot -as much or more than you'd use if you just added rum in the first place because the strong vanilla flavor is masking some rum flavor components. And, by the time you used enough vanilla beans to taste the rum, you'd be way, way overdoing the vanilla.

 

Rum or any drinking alcohol, keeps the vanilla beans moist by preventing evaporation (which regular home-use plastic wrap and bags don't do) and keeping them in a solution which happens to have about 50% water, give or take based upon the proof. BTW, some vegetables turn hard in alcohol because they normally have a lot more water in them and the alcohol pulls that water out via diffusion.

 

If you really need the rum flavor without the alcohol, reducing it in a pan and flaming it off (yes, start a fire in your pan) will remove most of the alcohol and the rest should leave as the custard bakes. (alcohol has a very low boiling point) That, or just use a commercial extract, they compound it by using the flavor components (sourced from all over) of rum in a stable base.